


The Bronze Key

by firefly61257



Category: The Ascendance Series - Jennifer A. Nielsen
Genre: F/M, Gen, Minor Romance, Spoilers for original series, multi-chapter
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-03-19
Updated: 2021-03-25
Packaged: 2021-03-28 09:08:22
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 6,656
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/30137238
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/firefly61257/pseuds/firefly61257
Summary: The characters are asked to find a special key, but another group wants to find it first. Told from Imogen's point of view, they must decide what to do and unlock secrets with another royal who is hidden at Drylliad. Meanwhile, they still need to find out what the other group's goal is and how they can stop them from breaking into the castle.
Relationships: Amarinda of Bultain/Tobias, Fink & Jaron Artolius Eckbert III, Imogen & Amarinda of Bultain, Jaron Artolius Eckbert III/Imogen
Kudos: 1





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> The tides (~~~) are section breaks, I like to use them on my word processing program. Enjoy the first chapter!

I was looking at a picture in the castle library. They were of Jaron’s family, and made me wonder a lot of things about them and their history. 

I wasn’t born a royal, but Jaron made me one, like how Eckbert made Erin on. Smoothing the sides of the frame, I looked around to see if anyone was around me. Once I was sure that I was alone, I pulled out a certain book I found on the shelves. The edges were worn, yet it appealed somewhat to me. I didn’t read a lot, but sometimes it was interesting to look for certain things here. 

There were soft footsteps at the door. The steps seemed too loud for it to be Amarinda, but it was too soft to be Jaron or Roden. And the rhythm sounded nothing like Tobias. 

I’d learn to tell people by their steps. It’s a very useful skill. 

At first, I only heard one person, but then I heard two. 

“Imogen? Could you open the doors?” 

The library doors were rusted by the years and difficult to open. I didn’t lock it, and Jaron was too busy to fix it. Besides, he thought it was good if any intruder wanted to steal the important books. But no one ever mentioned any secrets in the library. I found a few secrets myself. 

I put the book on top of a small table and reached for the knob. I made it budge, but it wasn’t opened by me. 

“Fink- Jaron, what are you guys doing?” 

“Jaron wanted me to come here.” 

“Oh, Amarinda just wanted some books.” 

“More books?” Fink whined. 

“Amarinda didn’t tell you?” 

Fink didn’t answer as he went straight inside the library. “Wow, what’s this?” He handed me the book I had been looking at. Worn and old. 

“Fink-” Jaron took the book from him. 

“What is it? Please, I want to know!” 

“Hide this somewhere.” Jaron shoved the book into my hands. I wasn’t sure why or what this book was about. I knew a few secrets but I didn’t know all of them. 

“I don’t think he is an ‘intruder’,” I said. 

“Just take it somewhere! An intruder might find this!” 

“Okay, but you have to tell me what this is!” 

“And me!” Fink added. 

Jaron sighed. I walked out of the room with the book in my hands. I slid my finger over the pages. It was soft but firm at the same time. 

I ducked into my room, hiding the book in a small shelf. Far away, I saw Amarinda walking down the hall, undoubtedly searching for Fink and wondering why he and Jaron haven’t gotten back already. 

I closed my door, hoping that Amarinda didn’t see me. I needed to be alone. 

Fink was with Amarinda and Tobias right now. I had no idea where Jaron was. I hoped Fink didn’t tell them about the book. Unless they already know about the book. 

Did they? 

Because if they did... 

Stop, I told myself. You can’t think like this. 

I was very, very tired. I couldn’t think straight. In a blink of an eye, I went back to a week ago. 

~~~ 

“There’s so much secrets in the library,” Amarinda had told Tobias. 

“The library?” Tobias raised his eyebrows. 

“Yes, uh- Darius told me. A long time ago.” 

“Are they hidden?” 

“Not so,” she winked. I had been listening to them talk. I myself was talking to Jaron when he excused himself, so I ended up listening to them instead. 

Now it seemed like the wrong choice. 

~~~ 

His breath was warm, warmer than the fire, warmer than the blanket, warmer than life. He was the reason I woke up each day, the reason I breathed. I looked into his emerald eyes. 

I cocked my head to the side. “What?” 

“The book was about Conner’s father in the first part.” I bit my lip. I knew I detested that man. He killed Jaron’s parents. “Well, it was about his life.” 

“Is that it? That’s the secret?” 

“No, there was something else.” 

“Was that the thing you hid from Fink?” 

“No... I just didn’t want him on it. It was supposed to be hidden.” His eyes flickered down but then he looked at me again. 

“Oh. From me?” I looked down as well and traced the designs on the blanket. 

“No. From everyone.” 

“Oh,” I said. All of a sudden I was too tired to want to know what it was. It just felt good to be near him and his warm breath. I fell asleep in his arms. 

~~~ 

I opened my eyes to the beautiful rays shining through the window. The spring wind eventually convinced the birds to chirp and sing. He was still asleep beside me, and I heard the sound of chimes ringing. Warmth filled my body. 

Jaron then woke up, and we just looked at each other and smiled. His smile only got bigger, and I felt him kiss my cheek. Still feeling his lips, I put my hair behind my ear. 

When I got up, I worked out the tangles in my hair with a comb. Then, together, we went to the castle library before we went to breakfast. 

I had hidden the book in our room, but Jaron seemed intent on showing me something. 

“The other secret,” he said. 

“I found that one out myself.” 

“When?” 

“I- uh, a long time ago.” 

“Some of the pages here have been burnt.” It was true. Some pages near the end were ripped off, and most likely thrown in a fire. 

“Who burned them?” 

“I don’t know.” He shook his head. “We should investigate more after breakfast.” 

I placed the book into my room, next to the other book. 

A servant brought food, and after we ate, we took the books. 

“What was the secret you found out?” He asked, opening the pages. 

“Conner’s father was involved in a war before this. He has a lot of money, but the only reason he became a regent was that he fought in a war. However, the pages also lists hints to his betrayal and eventually, Conner’s. Well, I didn’t read the whole thing, but that seemed like what it was saying.” I tucked my hair behind my ear. “Why didn’t you tell me this before?” 

“Do you know the secrets to the other one?” 

“No. Not yet.” I smiled. 

A knock pounded at the door. “Your Majesty, hurry! People have gone inside Drylliad!” 

My face showed a slight uh-oh and Jaron went out the room. I went through the open door, locked it, and went down the hall. No one was there. Was it possible that they all went to see the intruders? Or were they intruders? 

My feet carried me to the door. Luckily, I didn’t slip as I held onto the wall. Then I realized how dangerous the secrets were. The intruders had stacks of books in their hands. A few of the books I recognized. 

Amarinda was beside me. “Those books are secrets.” 

“Secrets,” I agreed. “But we shouldn’t tell those intruders that, or else they are more compelled to take it.” 

“Intruders? No, they’re not intruders.” 

“Then who are they?” 

She thought for a moment. “They are probably people looking for secrets.” 

I didn’t say anything after that. I doubted they were on our side. I even wondered what nationality they were. “Are they Carthyan?” 

She shrugged. “If they were, they should respect the King.” 

I nodded, but a scream took off. One of the servants was hurt. Before anyone could save her, the group of those people were growing. 

“We can’t give them the books! Hurry!” Amarinda shouted. Tobias followed behind her. Amarinda glanced at me. I shook my head. I had to stay here. 

A bunch of people came in. I didn’t recognize any of them, but they probably recognized me. Amarinda whispered something in my ear. 

I frowned. “If you want.” 

“Thank you.” She and her husband went inside the library. 

I waited for them, glancing at the intruders-not intruders every few seconds. They weren’t doing much damage now. The books were still in their hands and the guards were at the entry, arguing furiously with them. 

Tobias and Amarinda came out only two minutes later. 

“They had all the secrets I know of. But I probably don’t know a lot of the secrets, because Darius only told me about them once. And Tobias knows less, obviously.” She tucked her hair behind her ear. “So, apparently they have all of them.” 

“Maybe there’s some that no one knows about, still hidden.” 

“Are you implying that we need to hide all the books in the library?” 

I thought for a moment. “Obviously, that isn’t practical. So what we really need to do is read all the books in the library,” I said. “But that isn’t practical either.” Why am I mumbling? 

“Well, whatever plan you have, you have to do it quickly.” 

I shook my head. I wasn’t sure I even had a plan. 

Guards stopped them. I couldn’t see their faces, but I could see the books. Surprisingly, they got through anyway. No one could stop them. None of the guards were injured, and none of them were injured. They pushed their way through the guards. Were the guards drunk? I thought. Why didn’t they stop them? Then I told myself that they had stopped them, but only for less than a minute. There was few guards in the castle at this time, and those people were very tall. 

Why were we just standing here?


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading! I know I haven't updated in a few days, but here's the second chapter (very short lol). I may edit these later. I'll try to update with 1-3 chapters a week.

Snow covered Carthya like a white blanket. Large chunks of snow drifted down to the white ground below. 

When I went to Tithio last year, there was also snow, but the snow was rather freezing, and it usually turned to a smooth layer of ice on top of everything. Here, there was soft snow that looked like fleece, and the type that made Fink run outside and jump in it. 

I sometimes went outside a little bit, but I usually step on other people’s footprints instead of creating my own. I didn’t want to disturb the smooth and flat white that was above the ground, above the roads, and above our country. 

I walked away from the window. I chose rather thick clothes for the cold day and combed my hair. Only then did I realize that the book in my room was not there. 

And when I looked again, there were more things that were different in our room. The curtains were closed last night. This morning they were open. 

You’re overthinking, I thought. Jaron probably just opened the curtains this morning. No intruder came in. 

Or whatever they were called. 

I hurried down the spiral stairway where Jaron was waiting for me. 

“Do you want to go eat?” He asked. 

“Sure,” I said. An uneasy tension filled the air, and I was wondering if that was a result of what he would say next. 

“Well, today we have a visitor.” 

“A visitor?” I looked at him. “Are we eating first?” 

“No- the visitor wants you to eat with her,” he said as we walked. 

“Do you know her?” 

“No.” 

“Why did you let her in?” 

He shrugged. “She told me she was in for good reasons.” 

“Good reasons?” I stopped walking and whirled on my feet to face him. “Anyone can say that.” 

“Yes,” he said, pausing as well. “But whoever comes to Drylliad through the thick snow would have some good reasons. At least good reasons to kill them, if the reasons are bad.” He grinned. 

I didn’t say anything. We just continued walking. 

The walls were white but not harsh, and the windows were all polished clean by the servants. Someday I had to find a way to thank them. My life as a servant ended when Jaron came to the castle and made me a nobleman’s daughter, and later, Queen, but my understanding of their life would always remain. 

The visitor had blond hair and was smiling slightly but in a sincere way. “Good morning, Your Majesties.” 

“Good morning.” 

“The servant already left the food here. I invite you to sit.” 

This is our castle, not yours, I thought, but then quickly dismissed it. We sat down into the soft chairs. 

“So why are you here?” I asked, taking the fork in my hands. 

“I needed to apologize. Apparently, one person with us broke into the bedroom-” I casted him a look. “- without our permission.” 

“With or without your permission, your goal obviously can be achieved by breaking into the castle. And to do this is suspicious.” 

“I understand, Your Majesty but we were doing something essential.” 

“What nationality are you?” he asked. 

She bit her lip. “We don’t belong anywhere. But you do. So I'm asking for your help.” 

Jaron turned the topic to nationality again. “What nationality were your parents?” 

“Carthyan.” 

“So you betrayed your own country?” 

Taking a bite, she said, “no.” 

“Liar,” somebody interjected. 

“Wait, who was that?” I asked. “Marianne? Why are you here?” She was the maid who got hurt a few weeks ago. Fortunately, she only had a few cuts and bruises, which healed in time with the help of Tobias, of course. 

“Marianne? No, that’s not her name.” 

The girl got a questioning look in her eyes. “Leave. Now.” 

Marianne shook her head. “Elra, you’re not my boss.” 

“But I am. Marianne or whatever your name is, please leave,” Jaron said. 

She opened her mouth as if she were to speak, but then slowly closed it and left the room, her chestnut hair in a loose braid. 

“We need to tell Harlowe about this.” 

“Not now.” 

“No, actually, leave. Go.” She bit her lip again, but did as instructed. 

A tension hung in the air. I watched her leave, but I rushed up to her. “What were you here for?” I whispered. “The books?” 

She slowly nodded, but her eyes flickered somewhere far. 

Marianne. 

Rushing out the door, she never looked back as she ran. 

And I hoped she would never come back again. 

There was a window near the door. I watched her run off, her feet trailing through the snow. Her footprints stained the snow, an indication that she travelled in mud before. 

I wouldn’t have seen what I just saw if I hadn't turned my gaze to the left side. There was another person, a man whose hands carried the book that I kept in my room. 

How did they get in, and what did they want with those books?


	3. Chapter 3

Unfortunately, no one went outside to the back of the castle today yet, so I had to create the footprints. The snow was soft, and my feet sunk inside, making it difficult to walk. But I had a task to do. 

I walked around the castle, gripping the walls so I wouldn’t slip. I looked directly below where our room was. Stepping back, I looked up. 

There was no hint that anyone got in the room, but they seemed like they could cover their tracks. There was no footprints, so I was guessing they came at late midnight. I wrapped my coat more snugly around me. 

I retraced my footprints as I walked back. It was easier to walk back, thanks to the firm snow created by my steps’ pressure when I came here. 

“Where were you?” Jaron asked when I came in. 

“Outside.” 

“That sounds like where Fink would be.” 

“Underneath our room.” 

“That sounds like where I would be.” 

“If you intended to climb it. I wasn’t climbing it.” I smiled ever so slightly, although sometimes him climbing the walls wasn’t a joke. “Trying to find a way whoever they were got inside.” 

“That sounds... hard. They could have done anything to get in.” 

“Why are they so desperate?” 

He shrugged. I closed the door behind me and took off my coat. 

“I didn’t mean it that way,” he said. 

“What way?” 

“I didn’t mean that they were desperate. I meant that they were... resourceful.” 

“Clever?” 

“We don’t know that.” 

“Cleverer?” 

“I’d prefer if they weren’t.” 

“But we don’t know that,” I said, repeating what he had said before. 

“But if we were cleverer then we would soon.” His eyes danced. 

“How soon? And what if they do something harmful?” 

“But-” 

“No more buts. What if they actually do?” 

“No more what ifs.” Despite the seriousness of this situation, I still had to smile. The situation could wait; I would spend this moment with who I loved. This situation was far better. 

Situation. 

Situations. 

I giggled on the inside. 

~~~ 

That afternoon, Roden went to talk with Marianne. “So, what did she say?” 

“She told me that the people who stole the books are a group who were looking for something.” He took a drink from a metal cup sitting on the table. “She also said that she was opposed against this, so this was why they seem to dislike each other.” 

“That’s all?” I asked. “What were they looking for?” 

“She never said. Does Jaron know how she started working in the castle?” 

There was a brief silence. “There was a girl. Darius told her it was better... if she remained hidden.” 

“What?” 

“Her name wasn’t Marianne. But once around when I was nine, I saw another servant talking to her. I forgot what name the servant called her, but she said, ‘no, my name is Marianne.’” 

Then Roden’s voice broke my thoughts. “Marianne did say something else, though. She told me her name used to be Ahrina.” 

“So that was a fake name.” 

“She could be lying again,” Jaron suggested. “I don’t remember that as her name.” 

Lies were always a possibility, especially back at Farthenwood. Conner was just power-hungry, nothing more. He wasn’t the patriot he claimed to be. I focused on the situation at hand again. “Did Darius know Arina, or whatever her name was?” 

“She didn’t say anything about Darius.” 

“Shouldn’t we just ask Darius?” 

“Send a messenger to Belland.” 

Roden took another drink from his cup. “That’s a good plan.” 

I later headed to my room. Jaron had things to do, and I was planning to find ways to dress up the white walls. It was a bit plain, and I decided to make an accent wall with some decorations. 

A few paintings would go first. A very nice artist who was related to a regent from Bymar gave us some beautiful paintings for our wedding. We also had an artist from Carthya who painted something which we bought. 

We had a few more flowers and little things, some of which I wasn’t sure how to decorate with. Quiet footsteps sounded at the doorway. 

“What are you doing?” Amarinda asked in a soft voice. 

“I’m planning on decorating a wall in the hallway.” 

“Oh, can I help?” 

“Of course.” We were friends, and we did many things together. 

“Well, tell me you didn’t heard what I told Tobias that night.” 

“About the secrets?” I asked. “I’m sorry.” 

“It’s fine-” she took a few paintings and looked at them. “-I just had to tell you about what these people are doing.” 

“Right now?” 

“Marianne was my cousin.” It took me a second to realize the meaning of her words. Was she royalty? 

“A princess?” 

She shook her head. “No. She’s not the child of the King and Queen, but she’s not my sister either. Just a cousin.” 

“Why didn’t you tell us this before?” 

“I... was supposed to keep it a secret. But I thought I should tell you now. Her real name was Ahrina.” Amarinda eyed one of the paintings by the Bymarian artist. “This was by one of her favorite artists.” So that was her name. 

I carried a large painting into the hallway. “How did she come to Drylliad?” 

“When I got here, she came along too. No one really knew that she did until we got here and saw her. Her parents... don’t like her very much.” She secured it to the wall. “Does this painting look good here?” 

“It looks lovely.” 

“Alright, so, let’s get the other paintings.” 

“Does Ahrina know about her past?” 

“Yes. She’s not bitter about it though.” We walked to my room back again to retrieve another painting. “Ahrina wanted to get away from her parents as much as possible.” 

“But she’s royalty.” 

“She doesn’t want to be.” 

Reminded of Jaron, I got a few more small paintings. We continued to talk as we hung them up. Unlike what I expected, there was no tension in the air. I trusted Amarinda. She didn’t say anything more about Ahrina, and I never brought it up. 

At the end of the day, the wall looked better than it was before. Flowers lined the wall with paintings in between them. 

“It looks nicer now, right?” Amarinda said. 

I nodded. “How much do you know about Ahrina?” 

“She came here. I didn’t know. We came to Drylliad once and she was in the carriage. Then she told me not to tell anyone. But I couldn’t hide it from Darius. He then told her to just stay as a maid if she wanted to. Until she’s old enough or something. She really didn’t have anywhere to go. 

“Then those people who took stuff from the library. I don’t know what they were doing it for. But Ahrina insisted on fighting back. I don’t know...” She looked down at the castle floor. 

“It’s okay.” My words felt awkward. There wasn’t anything to comfort her about, but nevertheless the mood did feel a bit down. “Did you tell anyone else this?” 

“I told Tobias,” she said. “He was confused but he later understood.” 

“Oh.” 

Someone paced down the hall. Ahrina, her chestnut hair tied back into a looser braid than most servants and a tray in her hands. “What’s this? Oh, it looks good. Like elegant.” 

Amarinda bit her lip, unsure of what to say. “I told her,” she finally mumbled. 

“Oh? The Queen? Don’t worry, that’s okay.” She whirled on her toes. “Brought a snack for you two.” Swinging her hair, she added, “Lilya was out sick. So I had to come. Did you talk about anything? You seem silent.” 

Ahrina, cheerful, softly hummed something. 

I glanced at Amarinda. “Thank you for the food,” I told her. 

“Mmm? Oh, you’re welcome. What happened this morning... was just an accident. I talk a lot. Maybe too much.” She moved gracefully, never once meeting my eyes. “So you want me to stay or leave? Tobias might be able to teach me to take care of Lilya, she’s always a tough one.” Ahrina giggled. “I hope the sickness isn’t fatal.” 

Then her eyes met mine. I quickly looked away. 

“You guys are so silent.” She giggled again. 

It wasn’t that I hated her. I just had nothing to say, now that I knew her past. 

I managed to talk, although the words tumbled out awkward and dry. “Do you want some of the food?” 

“No, I’m fine. You’re a Queen after all.” She smirked. Before I could say anything else, she waltzed downstairs again. 

“She’s just like that,” Amarinda said after she left. “She fakes tough in front of strangers though.” 

I pressed my lips together. “Let’s go see where Jaron is. He said he would be finished by now.”


	4. Chapter 4

“It’s Lilya.” 

“What happened to her?” I asked. 

“She is still good. They said that she had an unlikely chance she’ll die. Lilya is recovering. But she wanted to give you this note, just in case,” the messenger said. 

“Thank you. You may leave.” He nodded, stepping out the door. I pushed the door shut and read the note. 

I had a feeling she didn’t know what she was talking about. That was the likely explanation for the strange things she mentioned in the note. I should inform Tobias of it. But the words were so clear, and if they said she was recovering, that was certainly the likely case. 

It told me to find things. How was I going to find the thing? What was Lilya talking about? 

~~~ 

All of us were in the throne room, talking about whatever came to our minds. And what usually came to certain peoples’ minds were some very unusual things. 

I glanced at my embroidering. I pushed the needle down, revealing another stitch. 

“You should teach me how to roll a coin over my knuckles,” Roden suddenly said. 

“Why? You’re not going to impersonate me anymore.” Jaron paused. “What do you think will happen if I had a twin?” 

“With the same personality as you? The castle would blow up.” 

“What if I had a twin that was worse?” 

He chuckled. “The castle would blow up even worse.” 

“I’d have to send them away.” 

“No,” he replied. “If they were worse than they’d send you away.” 

“Then I'd have to try to be worse than them.” 

“Then the castle would blow up worser than ever.” 

“Worser isn’t a word,” Tobias piped up from his book. 

Roden sighed. “It is when I use it.” 

“Do any of you know about Lilya?” I smoothed the fabric. “She gave me a note this morning.” 

“What was the note about?” Sitting in his chair, Fink looked bored. He probably was bored. If he didn’t interrupt, he couldn’t talk. And if he didn’t talk, he would get bored. 

“Something about a key. Do any of you know about it?” 

“What key?” Amarinda asked. 

“She told me to find a key,” I said, remembering what she said in the note. 

“Did she describe the key and why she wants it?” 

“She described it, but she didn’t say why she wants it.” I smoothed the fabric again. 

Tobias closed his book softly and placed it on a small table near him. 

Ahrina, as graceful as ever twirled and came inside the room. “Silent again?” She asked. Her voice was like a song. 

“‘Silent’ is a strong word. Come out when you’re ready,” the person behind her said. 

Ahrina did many things that were certainly frowned upon as an ordinary servant. Were the rules for her looser because she was royalty? 

I sighed softly. It was her life, and she could stay here if she wanted. I moved the needle back and forth through the fabric. 

“You are always silent when I'm around,” she said. “Why?” 

“Indebted to royalty,” Amarinda muttered. 

“Hmm?” 

“Never mind. What were you here for?” 

“Just wondering what you were doing.” Ahrina had a permeant smile that seemed plastered on her face when she was around people that she knew well. 

“A servant?” Roden asked, disgusted. 

“She’s more than a servant,” Tobias answered. 

We were all peering at her. I looked between her and her cousin. I could see a hint of the similarities they shared. 

“Oh, certainly no less than a servant. But no more,” Ahrina said. 

“They know the truth,” Amarinda said. “So you might as well tell it.” 

“What truth? I’m just-” 

Tobias narrowed his eyes. “Honey, you have the wrong person.” 

“Wrong person?” 

“Uh- you really need her to explain. She’s not Ahrina. It’s Lilya.” 

~~~ 

“Alright,” Lilya, the servant who came in the throne room said. “So when one of us was hurt, it was Ahrina, not me. But we looked alike. So I guess that’s what’s wrong. All those other instances you saw me, not Ahrina. Ahrina was hurt by the group. And she was the one who’s sick, not me. She just wanted us to switch places.” 

“Why?” Roden asked. 

She shrugged. “It helps our lives.” 

“It’s a cheat.” 

“We just completely change into each other, I guess. The note was also from her.” 

That was interesting. “About the gold key?” 

She nodded. “Oh and please, don’t tell the cook about this.” 

I ran the facts through my head. I left the room. Opening the door to our room, I went back to the note I got from Ahrina. I gulped, my eyes skipping to the last paragraph. 

Protect the Gold Key away from Elra’s group. They will try to steal it, but I have hidden it somewhere safe. Someone will need to find it and know where it is. Unlocks a box of secrets. Look across the river. 

Lilya 

And at the bottom of the paper it read, 

I am sorry for the confusion. Elra cannot know that there are two of us. 

“Look, I have no idea what it is talking about,” I said to Jaron, who came in the door promptly. 

“Why don’t we just get Fink’s rat to solve this?” He refused to call it Runaway, because he didn’t want to think about it being loose. 

“It’ll just chew it.” 

“That’s what I thought. He could rip it up and we’ll never think about it again.” 

“That’s what I thought too. But those people are just going to come and steal the books again.” They came to steal the books when they are looking for the key. So they expected the key to be in one of the books. 

So the key... was probably not in the books. 

At least, that would likely be Jaron’s sense of logic. Unless it was also everyone else's sense of logic, which would mean that his logic would be the opposite of it. 

I sat down on the bed. “What?” I mumbled. 

“What do you mean?” 

“Oh, never mind.” My brain sometimes enjoyed entertaining me with random thoughts. “So Ahrina is really sick?” 

“She told me that Ahrina isn’t doing very well. She looks okay, but she says that she feels horrible on the inside.” 

“Really?” I asked. 

“Must be the effect of Tobias’ pain medicines.” 

“Must be the effect of those people harming her,” I said, in a more serious voice then the one he had used. 

“Pain medicines do harm you.” 

I paused for a second. “Wait! If they just injured her, she won’t be this sick. They could’ve poisoned her!” 

“They could’ve given her pain medication.” 

“Jaron!” 

“That was a good excuse for Tobias to give her more pain medication.” 

“Poison?” 

“Pain medication.” 

I sighed. “Ahrina trusts us with the key. We have to find it!” 

There was a brief silence. Looking at me, he then said, “Tell me what you know about the key.” 

“Well, it’s gold. And it’s shiny.” 

“That’s all?” 

“I could show you the note,” I said, cocking my head to the direction of a small table. 

“Alright.” 

There was plenty of words that were talking about finding the key, but only two words to describe the key, “gold” and “shiny.” But instead of looking at those two words, his eyes instantly flew to the bottom. 

Usually, I could tell where he was looking at. Sometimes, I had an idea of what he was thinking. It was hard to tell exactly though. Nobody knew exactly what he was thinking, although he tells me that I usually knew more than anyone else. 

He was looking at the bottom. 

“She’s just saying that she is Ahrina.” 

“She also told Lilya to tell us that.” 

“You’re right.” 

“It’s good that you acknowledge that. Especially when you do all sorts of things that are impossible to succeed in.” 

“But I did succeed, didn’t I?” 

“You’re right.” 

“Good. Now that we acknowledge that each other is right we can find out about this key.” 

I smiled.


	5. Chapter 5

There were two items on my list that required my attention today. The first thing was that it had gotten cold over the night, and a large crack in the castle walls had water stuck inside. We had to remove it, so it doesn’t end up bursting the walls. I wasn’t sure why this was a situation that I had to attend to, but apparently a servant did something incorrect. 

That was okay. I knew the life of servants. 

The second thing was that Elra wanted to see us again. That was where the complication starts. 

I was tired, and I didn’t want to see her. She seemed like she was looking for the key, but a lot of mysteries of her quest was still confusing. 

A hand knocked on the door lightly. “She’s outside, Your Majesty,” a familiar voice said. 

“Lilya?” 

“This is Ahrina. We are still friends.” 

I almost laughed. This was her way of telling me that they are still switching places. “Alright, I’ll be there soon. You can leave.” 

My heart finally settled in a normal heartbeat when I heard her footsteps leave and disappear into the background of the busy castle. Elra could do whatever, but we have so many guards here. And why would she want Ahrina for? Did she know that they switched places? 

I stepped down the stairs, being as quiet as possible. I wasn’t sure why, but if I got a chance to spy on whatever Elra was up to, I needed to do it. 

When I got to the bottom, there was no one in sight, much to the disappointment of the excess of my quietness. 

“Good afternoon, Your Majesties.” Contrary to what she was saying, Elra looked as if she wanted us to have a bad afternoon. 

“You look as if you have something you needed to do,” Jaron said. 

“Do what?” Her voice sounded innocent, but her face told the whole story. She wanted to find something. 

“Why did you come here? Why did the other member of your group come here?” 

“That’s enough questions. I came here because I was looking for someone. And something.” She swallowed a bit. “If you can give these two to me, then I will leave.” 

“Has it occurred to you that the only reason I haven’t have you sent to the dungeons is because I wasn’t sure if you were on our side or not?” 

I looked at him again. No fight, no fight, no fight. I mouthed the words on my lips. 

But oddly, he was looking at my lips, not the words formed using my lips. He blinked and turned to Elra again. “So?” 

“Would you like to know who I’m looking for?” 

I nodded slightly. 

“I’m looking for Ahrina. She’s the cousin of Princess Amarinda, I’m sure? We won’t do anything to Amarinda, I promise. We were going to kill Ahrina that day, but then we thought it was better if we got her on our side. So we harmed her, a bit, so she could learn her lesson.” I knew it. 

“I doubt she ever will.” 

“Well, we’ll see about that, wouldn’t we? Now, you need to give us her.” 

We wouldn’t. The words pounded in my head. I should be able to think of a myriad of excuses on why we needed her, but the words were all gone from my mind. In fact, I barely even spoke in the last two minutes ago. 

The only words in my head was no fight, no fight, no fight. And we wouldn’t. We had no reason to keep Ahrina other than making Elra furious, but we had no reason to let her go. We had to protect her. We had to protect the key. 

“Elra... we wouldn’t.” I blinked twice. 

She smirked. Then I knew she wasn’t on our side. 

~~~ 

“The snow all melted,” I said, looking out the window. 

“I know.” 

I could tell that Fink was bored. “Do you want to go outside?” 

“Yes... I could.” He tilted his head. “I just did.” 

“So what do you want to do?” I asked. 

“Who visited you today?” 

“Just a girl. She visited us last time.” 

“What last time?” 

“Fink, do you know anything about a gold key?” 

“A gold key? Oh yes, Tobias talked about one important person that made a really fancy key for the Bymarian Queen-” 

“No, I wasn’t talking about him!” 

“Oh, it was actually a bunch of people. Yeah, that was the only interesting lesson he gave last week,” he said. “So what was the part about the gold key?” 

“Just- if you see a gold key around here, especially-” I was going to say in the library, but then I remembered the fact that Ahrina was smart and that they couldn’t find anything in the library. “-not in the library.” 

He made a face. “Oh, okay. What do you need it for?” 

Luckily, Jaron came over. “What do you need what for?” 

“The gold key,” Fink said. 

“Oh.” 

“So that’s all. What were you doing?” I asked. 

“Just more work.” 

“I swear, if you climb on the steep side of the castle walls again-” 

“See, unfortunately —” he smiled. “— the crack in the wall was on the steep side of the castle walls.” 

“Couldn’t a servant go up there and fix it?” 

“He got stuck.” 

“And you could have gotten stuck as well.” 

“Then I’ll call all the people of Carthya to climb the walls. Every life matters.” 

“Your life matters.” But this was fun anyway. “So the servant is safe now?” 

“Yes, he is.” 

“Which servant?” Fink went to get a drink of water, but came back and continued talking. 

“I- you.” 

It took a moment. “Jaron your climbing influences your brother now!” 

“I’m a servant?” Fink raised his eyebrows. 

“I never said you were a servant. She brought the word up,” Jaron said. 

“But you never denied it!” 

“But I’m not a servant, correct?” 

I laughed. “No, you're not. I thought he was actually talking about a servant. Did Fink help you with the water?” 

Fink nodded proudly. “Yes.” 

“I was thinking of something,” Jaron said. 

“As long as it isn’t climbing the steep side of the castle walls again.” 

“You sound like Mott.” 

“You sound like yourself. Anyways, what was your idea?” 

“We should send Ahrina back to Bymar. It’s safer for her there.” 

I knew she didn’t want to go to Bymar. She liked her life here. “She’s seriously sick, Jaron.” And she didn’t want to go there. 

“Those people are looking for her.” 

“What do you think they want her for? It’s probably the same issue as with the gold key. So a better plan is to send the key back to Bymar.” 

“That’s reasonable, but-” 

“And are you sure you want to oppose them? Maybe it’s better you just give them what you want. Or negotiate. Probably negotiate, because Ahrina is not going back to Bymar. That’ll launch them in a fistful with Bymar, and we don’t want that.” 

He sighed. “Fine. We’re finding Ahrina right now.” 

“Alright.” 

I walked down the hall, passing the wall I decorated with Amarinda. I remembered what she had sad the other day, Indebted to royalty. 

“Where’s Ahrina?” I asked the cook, partly because Jaron didn’t have exactly the best history with him and partly because I was the one who needed to find her first. 

“Which Ahrina are you talking about, Your Majesty?” 

I froze and realized he must have found out that they were switching places. “Uh, the real one.” 

He explained that the issue was that he wasn’t sure who was the real one. 

“Well, take me to the last one you spoke to.” 

“Alright.” From the tone of his voice though, it seemed like he wanted for us to fire both of them. I wasn’t sure if we were going to, but I know for a fact that it wasn’t a good idea for her to go to Bymar. 

He signaled for a girl to come forward. It was Lilya. However, she had precisely told us not to tell the cook about this (although it did seem like a joke), so I kept quiet. 

Once we were alone, she started talking about how Ahrina was. Apparently, she was worse than we thought, but Tobias had checked on her and said that she would be fine. 

We didn’t talk about much after that. We knew we had to get the real Ahrina to do that.


End file.
